Looking up
by Landon Richardson
Summary: Chin doubted that Steve knew just how much his casual words offering Chin a place on his taskforce actually meant to the older man. It would probably be something they would never discuss but it meant the world to Chin and it was a chance that he was not going to let slip by. One way or another he would make sure this taskforce worked. (Part three of the Danni saga, female Danni)


Looking up

By

Landon Richardson

Disclaimer

 **The characters of Chin Ho Kelly, Kono Kalakaua, Steve McGarrett, John McGarrett and Malia Waincroft belongs to the creator of 50 who obviously is not me. I am merely using them for fun and for entertainment purposes.**

 **The character of Danni Williams and Nyla Kaiwi however do belong to me. Danni while originally based on male Danny has taken on a life of her own as anyone who has read the series has known.**

 **Obviously it goes without saying that any other characters you don't recognised also belong to me.**

Author Note

 **Well this was certainly not a story which I expected to write when I sat down at my laptop today but there's life. I was inspired with this idea and went with it.**

 **This can be read either before or after Thank you since they both happen pretty much at the same time… technically though I would hazard a guess that this happens maybe two hours before thank you… and so would be number 3 in the series**

 **The Danni saga while obviously based on Danni is a saga where all the characters are explored in detail including Chin and Kono hence why this story is completely and utterly Chin based. I thought it was important to get his feelings on things written down and show just how important this place on the task force actually is to him and how he views it. Nyla has always been in my mind as his sibling since the first time I watched the show so it's nice to finally flesh her out especially as both she and her name will pop up during other stories. I thought it was important to show that why the majority of his family turned their back on him, there were others apart from Kono who had his back and never believed the allegations made against him.**

 **Anyway, please enjoy**

Summary

 **Chin doubted that Steve knew just how much his casual words offering Chin a place on his taskforce actually meant to the older man. It would probably be something they would never discuss but it meant the world to Chin and it was a chance that he was not going to let slip by. One way or another he would make sure this taskforce worked. (Part three of the Danni saga)**

Romances

 **Mentions of Chin Ho Kelly/Malia Waincroft**

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 **28** **th** **September 2010**

 **A hui ho café**

 **Haunama Bay**

 **Oahu**

 **Hawaii**

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Chin Ho Kelly glanced down at the watch on his wrist for the second time in three minutes and frowned, leaning back in his chair as he looked around the café at the other customers enjoying their lunches. He was due to meet his younger sister Nyla at 12.30 but she was clearly running late which wasn't like her, normally she was like him, always on time to everything, hell she even liked turning up to things ten minutes early just to be sure she was there. Shaking his head, he resisted the urge to check the time again, instead reaching into his jeans pocket and pulling out his cell from within, his eyes dropping to the screen, biting the inside of his cheek when he saw it was blank meaning she hadn't tried to call or text him. Either she was close enough that it seemed pointless to her to ring him or she had forgotten that they were meeting today.

It was possible though unlikely, his sister was a nurse at Kings hospital, married with three young children, she was always busy, running around the place after patients or children but she had never failed not to meet him for the lunches they had twice a month on every other Saturday.

He breathed out slowly, looking down at the table surface where he had the menu open and studied it, trying to decide between the chicken and the fish. He would give her five more minutes before he called her to see where she was, if she didn't pick up then he would try the house phone. Thinking about it he couldn't actually remember whether she had told him whether she was working this weekend or not.

"Hey big bro, I'm sorry I'm late. I was about to leave when Alik started getting upset, he's got a bad cold at the moment so he's whiney and clingy and doesn't want anyone to leave his sight for longer than two seconds at the moment."

Chin looked up at the familiar voice, a wide smile coming to her face when he saw Nyla come to a stop by the table. She was dressed casually in a bright orange dress, her long dark hair pulled back into a messy ponytail which spoke of someone who had little time to care about their appearance.

"I guess I can forgive you sis" He responded as he came to his feet and leaned across, kissing her smooth cheek before he took his seat again, watching as she shrugged her large shoulder bag off and threw it into the corner of the booth before she slid in herself, taking the space opposite him.

"Well that is good to know, I was going to call you but I was driving and by the time I thought about it I was almost here so there didn't seem much point." She stated with a shake of her head as she pushed her sunglasses to the top of her head and reached out for the second menu, opening with a sigh. "Have you been here long? Do you already know what you're having?" She asked him, her dark eyes flickering up at him.

"About fifteen minutes" He answered honestly "And as for what to eat I think I'm going to have the fish today" He told her, closing the menu and pushing it to the side of him. She made a sound at the back of her throat before she nodded.

"I'll have the chicken salad then" She remarked.

"Is Alik okay though?" He asked her revering back to their previous conversation, an undertone of concern to his voice. His nephew Alika was ten and Nyla's eldest child. It was unusual for him to get sick with anything.

"He's fine Chin, don't worry about that, he literally just has a cold nothing more or less" She assured him with an amused smile which turned rueful as she continued speaking. "Of course this does mean that Iolani and Kai will no doubt come down with it just as Alik is beginning to recover from it but that is unfortunately one of the joyful perks of motherhood." She commented with a sigh before she tilted her head to the side, her eyes narrowing slightly as she searched his face clearly searching for something. "That's enough about us though, I want to know what's going on with you. You said on your voicemail that there was something you wanted to tell me and that you could only tell me face to face so here I am. Tel me what the big news is" She demanded, resting her forearms on the table and leaning towards him.

"I've got a job" He told her, tapping his fingertips against the table surface as she blinked, a confused expression coming across her face at his words. He smiled, being able to render his sister speechless even for a few second was always something worth savouring.

"I know you do Chin" She said slowly. "You've had the same security job for the past four years. It's hardly the news of the century bro unless you're telling me that you've got a promotion with them because if that's the case it's about time. You're clearly the most qualified guy they have, you should be running the place." She remarked.

"I appreciate the vote of confidence" He replied fondly.

"It's the truth" She answered instantly. "Of course you might actually be talking about a brand new job. You didn't mention anything the last time we spoke but…" Her voice trailed off as she gave him a pointed look clearly expecting him to explain to her what he meant. He took pity on her and spoke.

"It is a new job" he confirmed "And the reason I didn't mention it to you the last time we met was because I wasn't actually looking for a new job the last time I saw you." He commented, turning his attention to the waitress who approached them, she smiled at them both, writing down their orders before she turned and left them. Chin looked back at Nyla as she spoke, picking the conversation back up as though they had never been interrupted.

"So you weren't looking for a new job but somehow one found you regardless, one good enough that you gave in your notice straight away?" She queried, leaning back against the back of the booth and crossing her arms over her chest.

"Actually it was more like one found me." He said cryptically, smiling at the peeved expression which came to her face. If there was one thing which his sister hated it was people who beat around the bush in conversations rather than them coming straight to the point they were trying to make in the first place. "Do you remember a kid called Steve McGarret Ny? I think he was at school the same time you were." He asked her. Nyla stared blankly at him for a moment before a sudden look of recognition came to her face.

"Steve McGarrett" She repeated thoughtfully. "I think I do remember him vaguely, wasn't he the son of your old partner John McGarrett? We were in the same school but he was two years behind me so we never spoke or interacted or anything like that. I pretty sure the only reason I knew him was because he was the quarterback on the team before he disappeared from the face of the planet mid semester. People said that his dad shipped him and his sister off to the mainland to live when their mother died because he couldn't cope with them."

"That's the one" Chin confirmed with a nod of his head. "Steve went to the mainland when he was 15 to live with his Uncle who was apparently John's younger brother though you would never know it considering John never mentioned having any siblings. Steve did really well over there, he got into Annapolis and graduated top of his class. He was a SEAL for six years before he ended up in navy intelligence."

"Right" She said drawing the word our thoughtfully as the same waitress reappeared at their table, placing their mugs of coffees in front of them with a smile before she moved away from them again. "So" Nyla continued. "I'm going to make the assumption that Steve McGarrett has something to do with this new job offer of yours and you're not taking the pair of us on a trip down memory lane because you're feeling old. I mean you only turned forty one a week ago today Chin, that's not old… not really." She commented with a grin at him as she grabbed one of the sugar packets from the pot beside them and ripped it open, pouring the contents into her milky coffee.

"Steve's come back to the island due to his father's death" Chin said softly. "The Governor offered him his own task force to run as he sees fit on her behalf and he agreed to it. I guess with everything that's happened recently with his dad being murdered and all he feels the need to just settle for a while. He looks drained so he's probably been working himself into the ground with no rest. His old man was the same, they both got the McGarrett laser focus which doesn't allow them to just relax or let someone else help them."

"It was terrible what happened to John, I know how much he meant to you brother" Nyla remarked sympathetically, reaching across the table and covering his hand with hers, squeezing down on it as a show of support because she changed the subject. "So Steve now has his taskforce and he's sticking around, I'm guessing he's offered you a place on it with him?"

"Yeah that's right" Chin answered with a nod. "I accepted it straight away, handing in my resignation the same day. His dad's case was our first case but we've had another one since then, both of them solved quickly which isn't too bad for a taskforce who have only been active for five days." He remarked, a hint of pride coming to his voice.

"Not too shabby Chin" She said, falling quiet as their food was placed in front of them. He expected her to start talking again once the waitress was gone but instead she remained silent, her mind clearly on something else. He raised an eyebrow at her as he spoke.

"Ny? Everything okay up there? You zoned out on me for a moment" He stated, meeting her eyes curiously.

"Yeah sorry I'm just…" She hesitate for a moment, looking down at her food before she looked back up at him, taking a deep breathe before she spoke again. "Does Steve know the business you went through with HPD?" She asked him quietly. Chin tilted his head to the side, staring out of the window for a moment at the people passing by as he waited or the familiar rush of rage and betrayal to go through him as his mind replayed flashes to him of what he had gone through.

"He does" Chin answered, "They all know about it. I told them straight away"

"And it doesn't bother him at all?" She pressed, sounding almost nervous for a second.

"Steve doesn't think I took the money, he believes me. It's amazing how someone who is pretty much a stranger to me can believe in me when so many of the people I considered myself closest to didn't"

"Hey" She said, gipping his hand again and squeezing on it. "I know you didn't take a cent of that money. You're a good man Chin Ho Kelly, the best man I know apart from dad and Mika. There is no way in hell that you would have stolen it. You're not a dirty cop regardless of what everyone else thinks" She said, lowering her voice though it did nothing to hide her anger and frustration from him. He smiled at her, squeezing her hand back. His sister had been one of his rocks during the whole IA witch-hunt. The only one other than his parents and Kono who didn't turn her back on him. Instead she had gone to war happily with the rest of their family, constantly proclaiming his innocence to them when she was forced to socialise with them at a family event. It was something which he had never forgotten. He knew his baby sister had taken a lot of grief over her support of him and he was determined that one day he would find the perfect way to repay her for her unwavering loyalty to him.

"I know sis and I appreciate it" He told her, taking his hand back and tucking into his food before it got too cold to eat and enjoy.

"So who else is on this taskforce apart from you or is it just you and Steve at the moment? What about the pay is that better because no offence Chin but your house could use some work on it." Nyla stated with a firm look at him.

"The pay is the same as I got at HPD but with ten percent added on top of it. I'm guessing that because we're the Governor's personal taskforce we're consider elite which means we earn more than the others do" He commented, watching the pleased smile which came over her face at his reply. "And as for my house, I'll have you know that it's fine. All it needs is a lick of paint and the whole place will be as good as new." He told her, rolling his eyes when she snorted at him, a look of disbelief and pity on her face as though she thought he was being delusion. It was a look he had seen countless of times in the past from her and a look he would no doubt see again in the future.

"That's good then" Was all she said as she continued eating, waiting for him to continue answering her questions.

"There's two other members on the team at the moment, Danni Williams was a Detective with HPD but is now Steve's second in command on the team, and the other member is…" His voice trailed off as he took a bite of his fish, smiling at her as he chewed it, watching her frustration building.

"You know you're not funny regardless of what you think" She remarked. "Who is the last member you'll be working with?"

"It's Kono" He told her, sitting back in his chair and waiting for her reaction. A grin coming to his face when she didn't fail to disappoint him. For a moment she remained still, her fork frozen half way to her mouth, her eyes wide before she suddenly let out a shriek.

"Kono? As in our baby cousin Kono Kalakaua?" She demanded loudly, clapping her hand over her mouth when she realised that she had been shouting. She shot the nearby people an apologetic look before she turned back to Chin. "Seriously do not mess with me Chin, do you mean our Kono?" She demanded.

"The very same one" Chin responded. "She helped us on the John McGarrett cases and managed to impress both Steve and Danni. Steve offered her a place on the team on the very same day, not bad for a rookie fresh out of the Academy."

"How is that possible though?" Nyla demanded. "I went to Kono's graduation dinner yesterday, she only graduated yesterday from the academy right? She didn't mention anything to me when we spoke."

"Don't feel hurt by it, I don't think she's telling anyone yet, I think she thinks that if she starts telling people about it then her good luck will run out and Steve will retract his offer and hand her over to HPD and she wouldn't have a good time there at all. We both know what happens to people in HPD who are known to be related to me after all." He said bitterly.

"That's not your fault" She said stubbornly to him.

"Yeah? Well try telling that to the cousins who are suffering through that connection, I'm sure they'd have a different answer to tell you." Chin remarked, causing her to sigh as she shook her head at him.

"I would but they aren't talking to me either. Apparently telling them that they have their heads so far up their asses that they could probably see out of their own mouths when they opened them was going just that little step too far with them." She remarked with a shrug of her slim shoulders. "Forget them though, I want to know more about the job. Kono must be over the moon with it."

"She is" Chin agreed with a grin. "I don't know how it's going to work though. I'm guessing she'll be with us for the majority of the time but Steve might expect Kono to walk a beat with HPD every so often so she can get a feel for the street. She doesn't have the experience that Danni and I have and she needs to get it and to get it quickly, especially when you consider the cases we're going to be dealing with. We're all going to have to be the top of our game to solve them, Kono included. I mean don't get me wrong, she can learn from the rest of us easily enough but sometimes hands on experience is what's needed, not someone telling you how to do things."

Nyla nodded at him.

"That makes sense" She said after a pause before she looked back at him. "So tell me about the last member, what did you call him, Danni Williams? Who is he then? What's he like?"

"She" Chin corrected instantly. "Danni is a girl."

"Another girl in the team?" Nyla said sounding pleased about the news. "And you said that she's Steve's second in command on the team?"

"Yeah, she's his partner as well. She's good for him, manages to keep him calmer than anyone else has so far."

"What does she look like? Is she pretty? Old?" She questioned, grinning when Chin rolled his eyes at her levelling his sister with his best unimpressed look. "What?" She asked, putting her knife and fork on her half empty plate and picking her mug of coffee up, blowing on the hot liquid. "Why am I not allowed to ask if she's pretty or not?"

"Because it's hardly relevant. I work with her, that's all" Chin answered.

"So?" Nyla countered. "Just because someone thinks someone else is pretty it doesn't mean they'll end up in bed together. Besides I'm your sister, I'm hardly going to run from here and scream it from the mountains that you think someone you work with is pretty. It's not that big a deal Chin. Besides if you don't tell me I'll just go on at you about it until you do. It's your choice." She said sweetly.

"Fine" Chin said holding his hands up in the air, experience had taught him when he was defeated. "She's pretty, probably very pretty I guess." He told her.

"What does she look like? Dark hair and eyes?"

"No, she's blond with grey eyes and small." Chin said on a sigh.

"Is she good at the job?" Nyla asked curiously.

"She's extremely good at the job Ny" He stated. She nodded, sipping at her drink before she spoke.

"You know I'm really glad all this has happened, you deserve this chance so much Chin. You took the fall for someone else, now it's time to show all the people who doubted you exactly how good you are."

"I plan to" Chin replied, he focused on his meal again, keeping an eye on his sister as she tapped her fingertips against the mug. She clearly had something else she wanted to say but he wasn't going to push her into telling him what it was. He knew her well enough to know that she would tell him in her own time.

"Malia asks about you" She burst out as Chin placed the last mouthful of food in his mouth. "She always asks how you are and what you've been up to. I think… I think she misses you Chin,"

"Nyla" Chin said, an undercurrent of warning coming to his voice which she clearly picked up on.

"I know, I know" She said with a sigh. "You don't like talking about her and I get that, I really do but it's not so easy for me to ignore her Chin. I work with her remember? Sometimes I'm the nurse who is assigned to her section and it's hard. I can't ignore her at work and I still like her and think she's a nice person. You forget that I'm the only other person apart from you and her who knows that she wasn't the one who ended it between the two of you. It's hard having to act coldly towards her and to turn down her offers of coffees and lunches when a part of me wants to say yes to them." She said reaching up and rubbing her hand over her forehead.

"I never asked you to do that Ny" He responded.

"You didn't have to" She countered. "The whole world knows that I am always in your corner and will defend you to anyone who even says your name wrong. Don't you think it would be weird if I was pleasant to the woman who everyone including our family, thinks abandoned you when the going got tough? They'd realise straight away that something was up." She pointed out, sighing at the look on his face. "This taskforce is a new beginning for you right? Maybe you and Malia can-"

"No Nyla" Chin interrupted. "That's not possible at the moment and you know it, maybe one day but not now, we're not even fully established at the moment. The taskforce needs us all focused on it at the moment to make sure it works, everything else has to wait."

Nyla remained silent for a moment, searching his eyes closely before she spoke, sounding almost surprised.

"This taskforce really means a lot to you doesn't it?" She questioned softly watching as he nodded.

"This taskforce is my last chance Ny, without it I'll have to go back to the security job I was doing and then I'll be nothing more than a rubber gun again. Steve and Danni have trusted me, they brought me onto their team, and they listened to me about Kono and brought her on as well. That means more to me then even you know. By the end of my days at HPD no one listened to me. I was invisible to them, my desk a ghost town. It got to the stage where they would look at me and just see right through me, if I spoke then they acted like I said nothing to them but that doesn't happen with Steve and Danni. They listen to me and they see me. They brought me on knowing about the IA investigation. They aren't fools, they would have known the reaction HPD would have at me appointment but they did it anyway because they saw something in me worth having. I can't let this chance go Nyla. I'll do everything in my power to make this task force work because I am not going back to the life I had before. This is my chance and I won't waste it for anything."

Nyla nodded slowly.

"Okay" she said quietly. "I understand, no more talk of Malia or anything like that. You need to focus on your new job instead."

"Thanks" he said, Nyla nodded before her face brightened.

"What have you got planned for the next two hours?" She asked him. Chin blinked, running through his time table in his head before he shook his head.

"Nothing until seven tonight" He answered her, raising an eyebrow when she grinned at him.

"Great you can come home with me and say hello to your niece and nephews. They are constantly asking where their Uncle Chin is. This way they get to see you."

Chin smiled looking at her before he nodded again.

"Sure why not." He remarked as he came to his feet, leaving a few bills on the table to cover the cost of the meal and drinks. He waited until his sister was ready before they headed towards the exit, one thought running through his head.

Things were finally looking up.

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Author Note

 **Thanks for taking the time to read I really appreciate it.**

 **An especially massive thank you if you've taken the time to review, follow or favourite this story. It makes all the effort worthwhile!**


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